Entertainment
‘Simran’: A feisty Kangana Ranaut canvas (IANS Review, Rating: ***1/2)
By Troy Ribeiro
Film: “Simran”; Director: Hansal Mehta; Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Sohum Shah, Rupendra Nagra and Aneesha Joshi; Rating: ***1/2
“Simran” is a film about an unconventional, 30-plus Guajarati divorcee Praful Patel who lives with her parents in Atlanta, works in the housekeeping department of a plush hotel and lives life on her terms.
Keen on buying her own property in the minority quota as it is affordable, Praful saves every dollar painstakingly, but one day in Las Vegas where she goes for her cousin Ambar’s (Aneesha Joshi) bachelorette, she blows it all up in a casino. She is in heavy debt, owing $50,000 to a money-lender who means business. One thing leads to another and soon, she is sucked into the world of crime.
Overnight, the independent Gujju girl with chutzpah, becomes a bank robber with convivial ease. While Kangana Ranaut as Praful Patel, slips into this avatar effortlessly, the writing belies credibility. It seems far-fetched and amateurish to digest.
Director Hansal Mehta has taken oodles of cinematic liberty to create situations and trying to pass them as existent. Praful’s character, however, is a well-etched one. He manages to make the lives of the Indian diaspora – their values, struggles, fears look real.
The film is racy and although the second half seems a tad long, it never really lets you stifle a yawn. Laced with abundance of humour, some straight- faced and witty dialogues, Kangana essays Praful Patel with her characteristic panache.
The film is Kangana’s canvas all the way and she makes it come alive with her joie de vivre and histrionics, which seem natural coming from her. And that is what makes you overlook the flaws and keep you riveted to the screen.
The scenes where she is at the casino in Las Vegas and when she breaks down after her money is stolen, are a pure treat to watch.
Of course the other actors — her father, Sameer (Sohum Shah), her prospective husband, the black money lender, all support her ably with their honest portrayal of their characters.
Cinematographer Anuj Dhawan, captures Atlanta in all its hues and the pulsating Vegas in all its glory. The music by Sachin-Jigar is apt and adds charm to the situations. “Meet” by Arijit Singh and “Pinjra tod ke” by Sunidhi Chauhan are melodious and soulful.
Overall, this frothy entertainer “Simran” is a film Kangana carries squarely on her shoulders and makes the most slipshod scenes look endearing. Watch it only for Kangana Ranaut.
–IANS
troy/rb/vm
International online casino Casino Days has published a report sharing their internal data on what types and brands of devices are used to play on the platform by users from the South Asian region.
Such aggregate data analyses allow the operator to optimise their website for the brands and models of devices people are actually using.
The insights gained through the research also help Casino Days tailor their services based on the better understanding of their clients and their needs.
Desktops and Tablets Lose the Battle vs Mobile
The primary data samples analysed by Casino Days reveal that mobile connections dominate the market in South Asia and are responsible for a whopping 96.6% of gaming sessions, while computers and tablets have negligible shares of 2.9% and 0.5% respectively.
The authors of the study point out that historically, playing online casino was exclusively done on computers, and attribute thе major shift to mobile that has unfolded over time to the wide spread of cheaper smartphones and mobile data plans in South Asia.
“Some of the reasons behind this massive difference in device type are affordability, technical advantages, as well as cheaper and more obtainable internet plans for mobiles than those for computers,” the researchers comment.
Xiaomi and Vivo Outperform Samsung, Apple Way Down in Rankings
Chinese brands Xiaomi and Vivo were used by 21.9% and 20.79% of Casino Days players from South Asia respectively, and together with the positioned in third place with a 18.1% share South Korean brand Samsung dominate the market among real money gamers in the region.
Cupertino, California-based Apple is way down in seventh with a user share of just 2.29%, overshadowed by Chinese brands Realme (11.43%), OPPO (11.23%), and OnePlus (4.07%).
Huawei is at the very bottom of the chart with a tiny share just below the single percent mark, trailing behind mobile devices by Motorola, Google, and Infinix.
The data on actual phone usage provided by Casino Days, even though limited to the gaming parts of the population of South Asia, paints a different picture from global statistics on smartphone shipments by vendors.
Apple and Samsung have been sharing the worldwide lead for over a decade, while current regional leader Xiaomi secured their third position globally just a couple of years ago.
Striking Android Dominance among South Asian Real Money Gaming Communities
The shifted market share patterns of the world’s top smartphone brands in South Asia observed by the Casino Days research paper reveal a striking dominance of Android devices at the expense of iOS-powered phones.
On the global level, Android enjoys a comfortable lead with a sizable 68.79% share which grows to nearly 79% when we look at the whole continent of Asia. The data on South Asian real money gaming communities suggests that Android’s dominance grows even higher and is north of the 90% mark.
Among the major factors behind these figures, the authors of the study point to the relative affordability of and greater availability of Android devices in the region, especially when manufactured locally in countries like India and Vietnam.
“And, with influencers and tech reviews putting emphasis on Android devices, the choice of mobile phone brand and OS becomes easy; Android has a much wider range of products and caters to the Asian online casino market in ways that Apple can’t due to technical limitations,” the researchers add.
The far better integration achieved by Google Pay compared to its counterpart Apple Pay has also played a crucial role in shaping the existing smartphone market trends.
Content provided by Adverloom
Foodman Vishal Singh Honored for Hunger Free World Mission in Bangkok
Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
Cheers and Cheers: Barzilla’s Joyful Ode to Inclusivity and Celebration
Casino Days Reveal Internal Data on Most Popular Smartphones
Meghalaya Reserves Legalized Gambling and Sports Betting for Tourists
IPL 20202 UPDATE: KXIP vs MI IPL Dream11 Team Prediction for Today Match, Update Point Table of all Team.
In a Live debate AAP leader Syed Asad Abbas hurls abuses to BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma.
‘India’s Most Wanted’ trailer out Arjun Kapoor on hunt of Osama-Bin-Laden
Time to move on: Sonakshi on Shatrughan’s joining Congress
